BEIRUT: Last year’s Beirut Art Fair was plagued by security problems. Kidnappings, Syria spillover and assorted travel warnings prevented gallerists and collectors alike from flying in, while those who did make it faced a chronic Internet failure that left everyone from organizers to visitors pulling their hair out in frustration. As a result, the BAF […]

Lebanese troops are to take over security at checkpoints set up by the Hezbollah movement in their southern Beirut stronghold after two bombings, the interior minister told AFP on Sunday. "A joint force of 800 men composed of soldiers from the army and security services will begin their deployment on Monday afternoon in the southern […]

(Reuters) – Syria’s conflict will cost Lebanon $7.5 billion in cumulative economic losses by the end of next year, the World Bank has said in a report prepared for an aid meeting at the United Nations. A summary of the report, seen by Reuters after the World Bank briefed diplomats in Beirut, provides the most […]

In the liberal remake of “Casablanca,” the police captain comes upon the scene of the shooting and orders his men to “round up the usual weapons.” It’s always the weapon and never the shooter. Twelve people are murdered in a rampage at the Washington Navy Yard, and before sundown Sen. Dianne Feinstein has called for […]

The rebel attack earlier this month on the Syrian village of Maaloula heightened worries that the conflict there is becoming increasingly sectarian, with some members of the historic Christian community there fleeing and saying churches had been desecrated. However, some of the residents the BBC has spoken to have challenged this narrative. The violence in […]

Beirutis took the cancellations in stride and were out in full force at the recent “Nehna wel Amar wel Jiran” (“We and the Moon are Neighbors) festival held in Beirut’s trendy neighborhood of Mar Mikhael, from September 6 -8th. The three-day festival, founded by Collectif Kaharaba, featured contemporary dance, theater and musical performances that were […]

WASHINGTON — Few American presidents have held a deeper belief in the power of the written word than President Obama. And in few ways has that belief been more tested than in his frustrating private correspondence with the leaders of Iran, a country with which the United States has had no diplomatic ties for 34 […]

One of my Colombian friends and I have been known to have long arguments over whether Shakira is Lebanese or Colombian. Of course, she is both — but although she was born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia and has full albums in Spanish, her signature belly dancing moves are distinctly Lebanese and inspired by the […]

The Obama administration’s awkward journey on Syria policy over the past few weeks has opened it up to a great deal of criticism. Officials have changed tacks a number of times, sent mixed messages about what they’re trying to accomplish and appeared unconvinced by their own policy choices. "The Daily Show" compared Secretary of State […]